And After the Storm comes the Rainbow
by Maturebel
Summary: When Thunder is discovered living in ShadowClan territory, her life takes a turn for good; especially when she finds Pineshade and Ravenheart. But can she really fit in with these organized, code-following cats? Or will she break the warrior code and be disowned by StarClan?


I perk my head up. The sky above me is dark gray and wet, promising rain and possibly thunder. Good. I'd missed the storms for the past two months, where it had been nothing but dry, crispy sun. This would wash away all the signs of distress the heat may have caused. I love storms more than anything else. There is a reason my mother decided to name me Thunder, I suppose.

My paws track along the well worn path through the woods. The ground is patterned with crispy red and orange leaves, but soon they'd be wet and rotten. The sweet, intriguing scent of autumn fills the forest, as well as the sharp well-known smell of an approaching storm.

I should make it back to my cave before the storm starts, to ensure my bedding is far enough away from the rain. My paws move faster and faster along the ground as I sprint through the trees. I bare my teeth as I always do with the pleasure of a sprint.

Finally the black mouth of a hollowed log appears between the trees and I slow as I reach it. Then I smell something. Another cat has been here, _here_, where I set my scent markers? I stalk silently into the log, eyes adjusting to the darkness to see the shape of a cat sniffing about my nest.

With a quick snarl, I leap forwards and see the surprised amber eyes staring at me as I hold claws to the cat's throat. It's a tom, and a big one at that, with dark brown tabby fur. I bristle and bare my teeth. He doesn't seem scared at all. I hate it when cats think I am weak because I am small, or because I'm a she-cat. They are wrong.

"Name," I growl at him, testing my claws on his coarse fur.

"Pineshade," he meowed, eyes slightly narrowed. He looked like he was _analyzing_ me or something.

"What kind of a name is that?"

"I'd be careful if I were you. Insulting me and my name. You insult me, you insult my Clan." His voice is deep and reminds me faintly of thunder.

This sends a shiver down my spine. "What Clan?"

"ShadowClan. This is our territory." he says coolly. Before I can respond, he snaps forwards, throwing me off. I snap my teeth at empty air as he leaps forwards, bowling me over. I run claws down his side, but he barely flinches. Instead he sinks his teeth into my scruff and tosses me away again. My head hits the wall and the world begins to spin in slow circles. I see him standing over me. "How old are you any way, kit? You shouldn't be here alone."

Anger replaces confusion. "I'm not a kit!" I snap at him. It's hard to focus on him; he's spinning so fast. "I'm sixteen moons old."

He stares at me - I think - before grabbing my scruff and dragging me away. My flank is bleeding. How it git scratched, I don't remember. The last thing I remember before the blackness is a drop of rain hitting my nose.

I wake to watery sunlight, the smell of herbs, and soft moss under my paws. I jump up and my head spins. "Don't make it worse," says a kind voice behind me.

I turn around, claws out, and see a young ginger she-cat looking apologetically at my paws. "Let me put something on your wounds," she says in a calm voice. "It will make you feel better. I promise."

"How do I know I can trust you?" I ask, shaking my head to try to clear the dizziness.

"Because I truly want to help you," she mews softly, meeting my gaze. Her eyes are a soft amber, much softer than the sharp amber of the tom out in the woods. Her eyes are wide. I stare at her. She doesn't look hostile in any way.

With a groan, I nod and plop back down in the nest. She approaches me with a wad of green in her mouth. "My name is Softpaw. I'm the ShadowClan medicine cat apprentice." she tells me, rubbing some of the stuff on my leg wound. I hiss as it stings and she jumps back. "Sorry," she adds. "it will sting a bit."

The cat - Softfoot or something? - finishes patching my wounds and smiles slightly at me. "You're allowed to stay here, for now. It's really up to Badgerstar. He only agreed because my dad told him we should help you. He's the deputy."

I realize her dad must be the tom from the woods. Pine-something or other. The she-cat pushes some small black seeds towards me. "Eat these. You need to sleep." she says softly. I lick up the seeds and wait for sleep, imagining rain and thunder and lightning.

Then there is nothing.


End file.
